Spiritual Warfare And Restoration

A certain teaching on the above portion of scripture began to appear in the sixties, in New Zealand in particular.  From there it penetrated Australian Pentecostal and Charismatic churches in a small measure and also certain parts of the world.  It has never been a widespread teaching.

It came from the spiritual children of Oeffler, of Bethel Temple, Seattle, Washington.  His teachings mainly filled Indonesia and New Zealand but never amongst the Assemblies of God that repudiated them.  One major teaching was water baptism in the Name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost which is the Lord (supposed Name for the Father), Jesus (the Name of the Son) and Christ, wrongly naming the Holy Spirit so.  The Assemblies of God used to consider it “Jesus Only”.

When the Latter Rain Movement was established in Canada and U.S.A., beginning in the late forties, an Indonesian missionary who had come out of Bethel Temple, became involved and greatly influenced  New Zealand churches started by him.  However, the mother church in Seattle did not accept this new Move.

New Zealand in particular became full of “free” Pentecostal Churches that formed separately from other Pentecostal groups, viz. Apostolic and Assemblies of God.  The Pentecostal churches were seeing  in a measure, what the “free” Pentecostal churches  considered to be the “Restoration” of spiritual things and gifts, with teachings.

One teaching and practice they majored on was “The Restoration of David’s Tabernacle”.   Today the ripples and even waves from that teaching have affected all the Australian Charismatics and Pentecostals, without many of them being aware of the foundation of what they are practising, viz. that particular teaching of the “Restoration of David’s Tabernacle”.  This teaching is based on Amos 9:11 that has no application whatsoever to their church beliefs or practices.

The teaching of the “Restoration of David’s Tabernacle” came about in this fashion.  A certain Pastor Lascelles of Glad Tidings Tabernacle, Vancouver, had an experience of revitalisation in his meetings through the much saying of “Hallelujah, Praise the Lord”, beforehand.  That and other factors led to the above teaching.  In his book he says that after such experiences he searched the Word to see if it was there.  He supposedly found it in this teaching from Amos 9:11, which as shown herein, is a wrong interpretation of that verse.

All believers have different and private encounters with God that are covered broadly by the Word and they do not need a special revelation to found a doctrine on some verse of Scripture that will support their case.

At the time of Old Testament worship when David’s Tabernacle had been built, he introduced music, choirs, dancing and prophesying.  See - 2 Samuel 6:13-17; 1 Chronicles 15:1, 7,8, 16-19, 37; 16:7, 39-42; 23:5; 25:1-8; 2 Chronicles 23:13; 2 Samuel 23:12; 22:1, 50; 6:21.  David is known as the “sweet singer (psalmist) of Israel”, 2 Samuel 23;1.

The doctrine has led to the wide-spread practice of having singers on the platform in services, in front of microphones.  As well, guitarists stand up there and often dancers, while the congregation may “dance” or “jump”.  This has supplanted real outpourings of the Holy Ghost in services.  In addition, it has led believers to move in the realm of the soul, i.e. with emotions, joyous feelings and exuberant dancing.  Worship is to be “in the Spirit”, with outpourings of the Spirit and manifestations of the Spirit according to 1 Corinthians 14.  This scriptural order rarely occurs.

Undoubtedly there was that new kind of worship under David’s leadership.  The point that is forgotten now is that the Holy Spirit who filled them and led them then, was the new Spirit of Christ and the Spirit who now works in the Church of Jesus Christ.  We are not living in David’s time of Old Testament animal sacrifices and worship in his tabernacle designed according to what God told Moses to build.   The actual Holy Ghost presence was not there.  It was merely the created presence of God, called the Shekinah.  Today, we have the actual, living presence of the Holy Spirit living within us.  He fills us, teaches us, enables us to live holy lives and is to be the source and inspiration of all our worship.  Such worship is to be “in Spirit and in Truth”, John 4:24.  The Day of Pentecost and 1 Corinthians 12-14 show us what kind of worship that is to be.  It is to be mainly in other tongues.  Loud musical instruments and sound systems, with singers, dancers and musicians presenting their talent in front of congregations that cannot join in lustily, have supplanted God’s desire for our worship His way.

After the Day of Pentecost, the Holy Spirit of the Old Testament has come to us as the Holy Spirit of the New, the same Person but now living in us and being poured upon us as the new Spirit of Christ.  Christ is now the fount of the Holy Spirit of God.

This also applies to worship.  Therefore, to take worship under David’s Tent or Tabernacle as an example of worship for today is to undervalue and underrate the Holy Spirit and His working towards and in and through us under this Gospel Dispensation of the Holy Spirit.

Hebrews 9:10 shows that Old Testament worship including that of David’s Tabernacle where sacrifices were still offered, were “imposed until the new order”.  That new order began on the Day of Pentecost.  We are now under that new order and not under any Old Testament order.

Such teaching was promulgated through Ray Jackson of the “Latter Rain” and “Oeffler” teachings, particularly in New Zealand.  He, with others from Seattle, had filled Indonesia and its resulting millions of Pentecostals with Oeffler teachings.  The same millions of supposed Pentecostals in 1970 and even until this day, were not baptised in the Spirit, speaking in tongues.

That particular experience of the Baptism in the Spirit is a tenet in world-wide Pentecostal churches of all brands.  They do hold to the tenet in Indonesia but for all these years, sadly have remained outside the general experience through wrong concepts and teachings.

The “disciple” of one of Jackson’s leaders in New Zealand, Kevin Connor an Australian, with many New Zealanders who are naturally brilliant and persuasive teachers, have spread much of this teaching in many places.  They, however, are staunch believers in baptism in water (and re-baptism) in the “Name” only and Connor’s published thesis contains with this, the doctrine of  “Baptismal Regeneration”.

There is no scriptural foundation for thinking that salvation comes through any baptism with water and/or the proclamation of the “Name”, meaning to the users, the “Lord Jesus Christ, which is the Name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit”.  This is what the above preachers believe, write and teach.

All of Scripture bears witness to the fact that the Name and the Person of the Lord Jesus Christ, does not include that of the Father or of the Holy Spirit.  The Lord Jesus Christ is a Person in His own right but at the same time, a member of the Trinity, which fact is clear throughout the whole of the New Testament, with glimpses of it in the Old Testament.

Baptismal regeneration is followed by Orthodox Churches that do not even believe in baptism by immersion.  Also, the Churches of Christ worldwide, believe salvation comes only through faith in Christ and water baptism by immersion.

According to John 3, water applied outwardly and externally cannot effect an internal and inner transformation!  As if we need water to wash away our sins and remove the “Old Man”!   A spiritual birth does not need the assistance of a material element like water, or even the declaration of “the Name" as the candidate is being immersed!  The normal belief followed by the majority of Pentecostal and Charismatic churches worldwide, is that water baptism whether by sprinkling or immersion, does not bring salvation or the new birth.

The above teachers filled Indonesian Pentecostal churches with their mainstay of the Tabernacle Teaching.  Generally, these churches have not been able to produce the Pentecostal experience.  If we follow historical facts, this teaching on the Tabernacle was introduced into the Indonesian Pentecostal movement seventy years ago by Van Cassell, a Dutch ex-employee of the Oil Company and W.W. Patterson from Bethel Temple, Seattle.

Unfortunately, it placed a burden upon the Pentecostal Church there that remains to this day.  The adherence to the “Tabernacle” teaching has resulted in black board drawings of the Tabernacle in thousands of churches.  Added to this is the teaching of “The Bride”, where drawings of a Woman, the parts of whose body are delegated to different areas of Church ministry, have been also placed in churches.  Thus their image of Christianity is external only, viz. a “Tabernacle” that is of Old Testament derivation.

 It has left a carnal worship and experience, as is the natural outcome wherever that teaching is majored, whether in Australasia or United States of America.  Hebrews 9:1 states, in the King James Version, that they were “carnal ordinances” of a carnal order and worship.  The churches need the teachings of the epistles in unadulterated form.

It is heretical to found doctrines on experiences.  God allows a certain freedom of expression in experience, suited to personalities, cultures and church circumstances.

When we examine Hebrews 6:1-3, with amazement we read, “Let us leave the elementary teachings about Christ and go on to maturity, not laying again the foundation”, or as N.R.S.V. reads, “Let us go on toward perfection, leaving behind the basic teaching about Christ”.   Yet the teachers of Restoration theories are teaching, with their understanding, the very things we are exhorted by Scripture to leave!

The early preachers of water baptism, before Martin Luther, preached a sound salvation followed by adult immersion.  They obtained it from the Word of God.  Martin Luther saw the truth of justification by faith in the Word of God, in Romans.  He then experienced it and preached it.  He proclaimed the priesthood of all believers from the Word of God, not from experience.

The widespread experience of the baptism in the Spirit came about at the turn of the century because devout believers saw it in the Word of God.  In like manner, they preached healing for the body, because it was in the Word.  So also the message of the second coming of Christ.  They found it in the Word of God.  All these experiences were based on the Word of God that they had received before the experience.

Doubtless the Church of our Saviour, over the centuries, has been a backslidden one in relation to Truth, Faith and Practice.  Historically, justification by faith has been revived as a basic belief in many quarters and so have the two baptisms and the laying on of hands.  However, these verses in Hebrews cannot be said to point to this history, as resurrection of the dead and eternal judgment are basic Christian beliefs that cannot be restored in this Age.  We await the Age to come for them.

In relation to “David’s Tabernacle” and “Hebrews 6:1-3” the experiences came first and then they looked in the Word of God for something that might fit.  The same thing has occurred in the Australian phenomena of “Falling Over and Being Slain” and in the Canadian, American, Australian, English, South African and South American based “Laughing Move”.  No one discovered such things in the Word of God.  They based their so-called Bible doctrines on experiences alone.

This is dangerous and it is tampering with scripture.  It leaves any preacher or church in the position of being able to have any kind of experience and then suiting some scripture to fit it and making it a doctrine. 

That is error.  It is adding to the Word and also taking from the Word.  The scriptures they use for all the above doctrines have no connection with their experiences and in fact many scriptures are altered and fabricated to suit their experiences.  It leaves us wondering about their experiences many times.

It is possible to have experiences that suit oneself, whether rightly or wrongly but let us not found doctrines on any experiences.  Rather, let our experiences fit the Word of God.

Pentecostals and Charismatics are seeking “experiences” as replacements, because in the main, they are not obeying and following the Word of God, particularly the epistles of Paul, left to us as “The Gospel”.   The Lord does give us experiences but we do not seek them.  We seek Him according to His Word.

Unfortunately, rarely amongst the Pentecostals and Charismatics does anyone diligently look into these matters.  Western culture is now based on humanism, psychology and some leftover Christian ethics from past days.

The West is brain-washed through this to looking for “Self” to be satisfied and is looking inwards to “Self” to see what is there that can be removed by “education” and “psychology”.   This is contrary to the Word of God.  Jesus said, “If any man come after Me, let him deny him-self”.  We are not to live according to our old “self”.   That carnal nature has been crucified with Christ.  We are to live in the newness of “Christ in us”, as we are now new creations in Christ Jesus.

Another fact is that the teachers of Restoration according to Hebrews 6:1-3 completely overlook that James in Acts 15:14-18, stated clearly the real meaning of that verse, Amos 9:11, which is the bringing in of the Gentiles to the restored “House of David” in the Person of Jesus Christ.  Their teaching has no scriptural foundation and is error.  They also ignore the fact that Hebrews 6 exhorts its readers to leave the very things these teachers are saying typify what is to happen now.

In New Zealand from the sixties on, those churches received many members from the Charismatics who were forced out or willingly left their denominational churches.  They considered “Restoration” was being granted the church.

As with the teaching on “David’s Tabernacle”, the present day teaching from Hebrews 6:1-3 is also founded on experiences.  They say it is the re-introduction into the Church of Jesus Christ truths such as baptism in water, baptism in the Holy Spirit, healing, laying on of hands with prophesying.

Going down the list in this portion of Hebrews, they say that the church has yet to experience the raising of the dead in large scale and the judgments of God as with Annanias and Sapphira.  These things are what I have heard their leaders teach.

The whole teaching is false.  In fact, it is both taking away from the Word of God and also adding to the Word of God, as the last chapter of Revelation forbids us to do.

This belief regarding the laying on of hands, practised and taught widely throughout Australasia, has occasioned much error in all of the Charismatic and Pentecostal churches there.  Nowhere in the Bible does it say that unless one goes to such a preacher to receive the impartation of this so-called anointing, or even unless one is slain, the person has missed out on the anointing.  That is error.

We are not speaking of so-called “transference of spirits”, which is a different thing.  Personally, I do not believe in such a thing.  I have seen preachers in adultery for years, laying hands on tens of thousands.  Those people did not receive evil spirits.  Demonic forces are from other causes.

Impartation refers to a person actually receiving with his will and co-operation, what the one supposedly imparting, is giving.  It is not scriptural.  That presently taught is wrong.

This idea of impartation is taken from certain teachings regarding the “laying on of hands” on the animal in the Old Testament, in Leviticus 16:5-10.  The true meaning of this act on the animal is as follows. 

It was done on the annual Day of Atonement, when one goat was sent out into the wilderness, a type of Jesus.  The sin of the people was laid upon it.  This could not mean that everyone’s sins were in actuality put upon this goat.  It meant the goat was taking their place in sin with its guilt.

Jesus, in 2 Corinthians 5:21, also took our place of sin with all its guilt.  Sin was not imparted into Jesus.  We must understand Scripture correctly.  Therefore, let us understand that we do not “impart” any spiritual blessing “held” by ourselves into others!

The real meaning of “impartation” can be understood from Numbers 27:18-23.  The laying on of hands was part only of the procedure.  Let us examine it.

First of all, the Lord specified that Joshua was the one to be the recipient.  However, He said of him, “in whom is the Spirit”.  The Spirit was already in him before hands were laid upon him.  Then we notice that secondly, he was to be commissioned before all the congregation.  Thirdly, the Lord told Moses “And you shall put some of your authority upon him”, in order that they might obey him.  In verse 23, Joshua was commissioned as hands were laid upon him.  It is plainly revealed in Deuteronomy 34:9, “Joshua was filled with the spirit of wisdom, for Moses had laid his hands on him and the sons of Israel listened to him”.

It is obvious that the laying on of hands did not actually impart the Spirit.  The Spirit was already in him.  Apparently the laying on of hands brought an increase of spiritual power because he already possessed it.   “He who anointed us is God”, 2 Corinthians 1:21, showing that the impartation comes from God Himself.

The same can be truly said of the laying on of hands in the New Testament.  Twice it is said that “hands were laid” upon them, in Acts 8:17 and 19:6, resulting in the Holy Spirit’s falling upon them.  However, hands were not laid upon the people for them to get saved or when they were baptised in water.

At the time of believing on Christ, the Holy Spirit as the Spirit of Christ was imparted to them by the Lord Himself.  It is never necessary to lay hands on the people at the time of their believing on Christ.

Hands may be laid upon those who have already received the Spirit of Christ, to have an increase of the rivers of living water.  These waters will flow out from within them, John 7:38,39 and are not actually imparted to them through the person who is laying his/her hands upon them.  This is the baptism in the Spirit.

There is no magic in the laying on of hands.  It could be said to be a point of contact.  The idea of impartation by causing people to fall over and be “slain” has no Scriptural foundation and is actually error.

“Impart” means “give share of (a thing to a person)”.  We do not have the power to give a share of anything we have from God.  This verse cannot be used to substantiate any impartation by a preacher or falling over (being slain).  “To impart," means “to transmit a feeling”, “pass on”, “to convey” or  “give share of”.

If God uses a person to receive healing, blessing, Spirit gifts, deliverance etc. it is not by “impartation”.  That is not in the New Testament.  He is believing and surrendering to the Spirit for Him to do His work in the person being ministered to.  “To minister” means “to serve”, not to impart.

Demons can come into such an operation and that would be as the preacher or person knowingly or unknowingly acts from the soul.

A preacher is to “minister” which means “render aid or service to a person”.  We render service to others by the laying on of hands in the Name of Jesus as He works through us by His Spirit so that Jesus Himself imparts whatever He wills according to the Word.  This can be healing, the outpouring of the spirit or other spirit-ual gifts.

Acts 3:6 is not speaking of an impartation.  It reads, “I do not possess silver and gold but I will give you what I do have. “In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, get up and walk.  Then he grasped him and helped him up”.  This is what he had - the possession of grace and spiritual gifts, 2 Corinthians 6:10.  By virtue of the power and authority of the Name (not by virtue of what was resident in Peter) the man walked.  We are not told to go to an Anointed Preacher for impartation.

The “name” stands for the revealed nature, character, office and authority of Jesus Christ and what He is.  Peter “spirit”-ually stood in the Presence, nature and authority of Jesus Christ.  The power of Christ flowed into the man, out from the innermost being of Peter where was the Spirit of God.

Peter did not impart this but his word was with power because of the Person and Presence of Jesus Christ, Who then acted in healing.  “Where the word of a king is, there is power”, Ecclesiastes 8:4.  Peter could be said to have “healed” the man but it was through the process described above.

There is such an emphasis on “self” and “psychology” that many people in our churches are primarily seeking for that which soothes the “self” and relieves them of the pain of their past.  Hence, laughing and falling over are easy ways to provide temporary relief!

What is the original and also present meaning of Hebrews 6:1-3?

Let us remember that even though the Holy Spirit is the Author of the Bible, in some wonderful way He allowed the authors to imprint their writings with their personalities, abilities, knowledge and understanding of their local situation.

For example, in Galatians 2, Paul, in scripture inspired by the Holy Ghost, told how he was in Arabia, went to Jerusalem and so forth.  In 1 John 1:1,2, John spoke of how they had “handled” the Word of Life.  In other words, he told of his close physical presence with Jesus when He was on earth.  Peter in his epistles spoke of his being on the holy mount (of Transfiguration).

Considering this, we have to understand that the writer of Hebrews was speaking of things known to him or her, e.g. Old Testament rites, rituals, priests and the Tabernacle, etc.

Let us examine the Book of Hebrews.

It commences with the fact that previously God spoke through the prophets but that now, in these last days, He has appeared in His Son.  Then the author goes to the gospel that was proclaimed and testified to by the Lord.

He emphasises that we are to fix our thoughts on Jesus, the apostle and high priest whom we confess, Hebrews 3:1.  He points out the faithfulness Jesus and of “Moses in all God’s house”, N.I.V., in chapter 3.  He mentions that Jesus has more honour, “as the builder of a house has greater honour than the house itself”.  He then says, “God is the builder”, placing Jesus as God.

In chapters 3 and 4, he speaks of the terribleness of not entering in through unbelief as the Israelites failed to do and he warns us not to be like them.  He goes on to speak of the rest promised.  “Now”, he says, “there remains a rest for the people of God”

In chapter 5 he comes to the earthly priesthood.  Then he brings in the Son of God, declared by  His Father to be a “priest for ever after the order of Melchizedek”.    In verse 11 he says, “We have so much to say about this that it is hard to explain because you are slow to learn”.  They were so slow that they needed someone to teach them again, “the elementary truths of God’s word”.

We were never in the position of the Jews who were under the elementary truths.  We in this generation, personally have always been blessed with the truths of the gospel, so we do not need to be under the “elementary truths” mentioned.  Jew and Gentile alike, if they do go back to those elementary things, they have “fallen out of Christ” as written to the Galatians.  How can we go back to elementary things? 

In chapter 6 because solid food is for the mature, he says, “Let us leave the elementary teachings about Christ and go on to maturity, not laying again..." These teachings mentioned in verses 1-3 were found under the Aaronic priesthood and the Mosaic institutions.  All the sacrifices pointed to Christ but following the Law that led only to death.

Faith in God was taught in the Old Testament, beginning with Abraham, Genesis 12-15 and see Romans 4.  Abraham and all who followed also understood that there was to be a resurrection of the dead and eternal judgment.

The priests under the Old Testament had various washings (baptisms in some translations) and this showed the horror of sin.  They laid hands on the animals in sacrifice, as did the offerer in the Scapegoat offering, Leviticus 16:21.  This was under the old order of priesthood, of Aaron and his sons.  Those things are elementary.  The law was to prepare them for Christ.  Everything that was done pointed to Christ.  These are the “elementary” or “basic” teachings about Christ found in the Old Testament and in the first five chapters of Hebrews.

Now, says the writer, the mature things of God are disclosed.  There is no longer an earthly priesthood.  Instead, we have a High Priest in heaven forever, after the order of Melchizedek, Hebrews 7:1,2,11-19; 8:1,2; 9:11-15, 24,25.

The teaching for maturity mainly concerns the priesthood of Jesus Christ after the Order of Melchizedek, Hebrews 5:6 and 7:1 and faith in Him.  In John’s vision in the book of Revelation, 1:13,14, Jesus Christ, the Amen, the Alpha and Omega, the great God, appeared.  He was in the midst of the seven churches of Asia Minor and He was dressed in the garb of a High Priest.  He was manifesting His High Priesthood after the order of Melchizedek.

A thoughtful reading of the passage concerned in Hebrews 6 and what goes before and afterwards, cannot produce any eschatological reference despite the eschatological teaching that has become the vogue in some quarters.  Disregarding that lack of proof, the followers of the Restoration teaching relate verses 1-3 to the last days of this last Age that we are in.  The sad fact is that the church in the West is experiencing a major “falling away”.

In Hebrews 6:4-6 the writer directs his attention to those converts from the Jews who were wishing to go back to Temple worship.  He warned them that they stood in danger of crucifying the Son of God all over again.

Chapters 11-13 finish and climax the “spiritual” portion of Hebrews on Faith.  Faith is necessary to enter into the rest of God.  Faith results in practical righteous living.  They and we are to have faith, “looking unto Jesus, (which is again reiterated as in chapter 3:1), the Author and Finisher of our faith”, our High Priest in heaven after the order of Melchizedek.  The writer was showing the believers not to look back to the old priesthood with its temple rituals.

Going back to Hebrews 6:1-3, in the light of the above, we can understand that the author is primarily concerned with their leaving the understanding of the meaning of Old Testament things.  Those are elementary teachings about Christ.  The basic belief they had on receiving Christ was that their faith was centred on His atonement. 

He was telling them that to revert to Temple worship with its rituals of the killing of animals as sacrifices, meant they would have to repent all over again from those acts which for them would now lead to death.  They would have to reaffirm faith in God alone and not in those sacrifices.  He was saying that even the teaching about those things was elementary.  The various washings connected with the Temple worship (or “baptisms” as King James translates) with the laying on of hands on animals for sin are not necessary any more.

In regard to resurrection and judgments, the Jews as a whole always had a belief in the resurrection of the dead.  The eternal judgment of God was a Jewish belief.  The author wants his readers to understand the more mature things relating to the Melchizedek priesthood.  He brings their prior knowledge of resurrection and the judgment into fulfilment through the second coming of Jesus Christ, Hebrews 9:28 and 10:36-39.

In their condition of formerly following the elementary things of necessity, they knew nothing of these mature things revealed in and through Jesus Christ.  Regarding the resurrection of the dead, the resurrection of Jesus Christ is the first fruit, 1 Corinthians 15:23.  The writer to Hebrews is saying let us leave behind the teaching about this.

He touches on the deeper aspects of the resurrection in later chapters.  He says that Jesus Christ had an “indestructible life”, in Hebrews 7:17 he is a “priest forever”, verse 20, in verses 23-26, 28, he points out that Jesus is not “prevented by death from continuing in office” but “he holds his priesthood permanently, because he continues forever” and He is “exalted above the heavens”, “a Son who has been made perfect forever”.   This is what the resurrection of the dead means, the writer is saying.  Thus in Hebrews 9:24, “Christ did not enter a sanctuary made by human hands ...but he entered into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God on our behalf”.

Regarding our resurrection the writer says, in Hebrews 9:28, “Christ …will appear a second time, not to deal with sin but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him”.  These are some of the reasons the writer wants us to leave the basic teaching behind.  These present truths concerning the resurrection of the dead, are far more mature and glorious.

Therefore the “resurrection of the dead” truth some are looking for in relation to people raising the dead in Jesus’ Name has no relevance in this book of Hebrews.  Neither has “eternal judgment”.  One factor that is missed is that the Word of God says “eternal” judgment and not “judgments”.  The judgment on Annanias and Sapphira was not “eternal” and it would have to come under a category of “judgments” plural.  Hebrews 6:3 uses both “eternal” and “judgment” singular.

In Hebrews 12:22-29 the Hebrew (Jewish) readers are warned that “Our God is a consuming fire” in judgment.  Their beliefs of judgment in the Old Testament are transferred to the final and terrible judgment of God that will be centred not on the elementary things but on the mature things of Christ.

 There is now a heavenly Jerusalem, the church of the first born and God is the Judge who will act according to the new covenant of Jesus’ blood, the Son being its Mediator.  God shook the earth at Sinai.  That is past.  The maturity is found in the kingdom that cannot be shaken into which we have been brought through Jesus.

Eternal judgment is covered by Hebrews 9:27, wherein it is stated, “And just as it is appointed for mortals to die once and after that ‘the’ judgment”, which enforces all of the above arguments regarding “eternal judgment”.

The author in Hebrews 6:1-6 says in effect, “I will not concentrate on those elementary things.  We will go on and speak about other, better and more mature things.  You have been enlightened and you have through Christ, tasted the heavenly gift and have shared in the Holy Spirit.  You have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the coming age.”  To them he gives dire warning.  “It is impossible for those who have been enlightened (in this way), if they fall away, to be brought back to repentance”. 

In other words, the danger for his listeners if they left Christ and went back to those Temple rituals, was so great they stood with the great possibility of losing their eternal salvation.

We have to understand this portion in this manner.  To place a wrong, distorted meaning on it is to take it entirely out of context.  That cannot be.  We are warned against both adding to Scripture and taking away from Scripture.

The writer had in mind the Hebrews he was addressing under the inspiration of the Holy Ghost.  There was no thought that he was addressing believers in the twentieth century, who would be able to take these three verses and formulate a doctrine of “Restoration”.

To understand the common, modern beliefs, we explain as follows.

“Baptisms” they say have been restored, i.e. water baptism and the baptism in the Spirit.  Well, water baptism existed in the church before Luther came on the scene.  I have two books on such matters.  The modern conception is that Luther came, restored “Justification by Faith” and then the Baptists and Brethren came and brought backwater baptism.  That is not so.  Then they say, beginning at the turn of this century, people began to experience the baptism in the Spirit.  This scripture, Hebrews 6:1-3, cannot be stretched to mean such a thing.

Going on to “Laying on of hands”, they explain that about fifty years ago, this verse was restored.  People were healed, baptised in the Spirit but in particular, these people emphasise “Laying on of hands and prophecy”, as happened to Timothy.  Therefore, they make a great event of this particular thing happening wholesale particularly to ministry.

I myself have experienced it and also laid hands and prophesied on others.  There is truth in it and it does happen.  I have experienced laying hands on every person in a church and prophesying over each one, to the amazement of the Pastor and members.  However, there is no scriptural basis that it is a restoration based on Hebrews 6:2.

As mentioned, they teach we will experience the dead being raised in large numbers and judgments happening in the church as with Annanias and Sapphira.  They are supposedly yet to be restored.  I believe in the raising of the dead.  I have met four children in Indonesia to whom it happened.  I myself have raised two dead children in India.

To use this scripture as a basis for a worldwide and general restoration of these things, such as raising the dead, is false.  In relation to judgments, that God sends judgments on the world and the church has always been the case and is shown by the book of Revelation.

Rather than teaching people these false morsels of doctrine, we should be teaching them the wonderful truths in the whole book of Hebrews.  Nowhere is the church promised a general restoration of all truths and experiences as in the New Testament.  History and the Book of Revelation say otherwise.  Each believer personally should seek out the Truth of the Word for his own life.  Jesus said, “If you love Me keep My commandments” and love for Christ will result in following the truths and experiences of the New Testament.

Churches, people and pastors have all started off the Christian walk and particularly in the baptism in the Spirit, with enthusiasm.  Their experience has been dynamic and life changing.  Afterwards, instead of settling down to being and walking “in the Spirit” according to the Word and instead of walking in the Word and having their minds renewed and experiences rooted in Christ Who is the Word, they settle for carnality, worldliness and formality with legalism.

This leaves them dissatisfied.  They then look for any “experience” that is in vogue and popular and seems right.  Thus they are led away into error, in doctrine and experience.  Perhaps they have “returned like a dog to his own vomit”.  These are hard words.  Let all leave the error of their ways and return to the Lord, His Spirit, the Cross and the Word.  Error will always be with us, as evidenced in the Parable of the “Wheat and the Tares”.  The message of Christ to the seven churches in the Book of Revelation with their errors, is still with us.

His voice comes to us clearly, “If any man has ears to hear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches”.  That always has its basis as the Word of God.  If we go outside of the Word of God, we do not have a sure foundation any more.  How can we rest our faith on what we ourselves or others merely experience, without the basis of the Word of God?

Consider 2 Peter 2:1-3 where it is prophesied that teachers will not follow the Word of God.  In chapter 1:19 we are told we do well to pay attention to the Word.  Also in 2 Timothy 3:15,16 it is the Scriptures that we must stand upon and not experiences.  2 Peter 1:19 reads,  “We have a sure Word” so let us take heed to it and not to experiences.  If the church and its preachers concentrate on error it means believers neglect to live in and concentrate on Truth.

It is obvious that the teaching of Restoration based on these verses shows that it is using flimsy, unreliable, unrelated evidence, dangerously altering the Word of God.

The New Age Movement has well and truly invaded the Church and has been accepted.

As New Zealander preachers from the Independent Pentecostal Churches there have exerted a great influence and much teaching amongst the tens of thousands under Clark Taylor and the many Christian Outreach Centres he founded, we should look into some of their teachings.

The reason for this is that it would appear that many of their prevalent beliefs infiltrated throughout the Pentecostal Denominational churches in Australia from the wide influence that the Charismatic Move has had in this country, viz. those Christian Outreach Churches. 

One of their major teachings is on “Restoration” and the Charismatics themselves have become involved over the past twenty-five years in “Spiritual Warfare” that in turn filtered through to the Pentecostals.  This has meant that there are those still looking to unfulfilled Scripture, even a Feast of Tabernacles.  The result is an expectancy of some new revelation and some different experiences.

 All of this has resulted in the popularity and acceptance of the ‘“Toronto Blessing” or “Laughing Move”, or the freely named “Refreshing”.

We now come to certain Charismatic teaching on “Spiritual Warfare”.

BIBLICAL SPIRITUAL WARFARE AGAINST THAT CURRENTLY TAUGHT

The Perversity in the heart of man caused the Jewish nation at the time of their Messiah, to live outside of the Scriptures.  They altered the meaning of the Scriptures to suit themselves.  They accepted only those truths that they wished to receive.

We know this from 1 Peter 2:7 that speaks of the stone “rejected” by the builders.  “Rejected” in Greek means that they “examined, found it fulfilled the test but turned away from it”.  And from 2 Peter 3:5 where men refuse truth because they “fully shut their eyes to the fact”.  Perversity in the hearts of false prophets and false teachers today, results in their refusal to consider possible truth.  As in 2 Timothy 2:18 they left the path of truth.

They must WILL to do God’s will in relation to knowing the Truth.  Jesus said, John 7:17, “If any be willing to do God’s will he shall know concerning the teaching”.  We must will not to follow men’s tradition or philosophies.  We should be willing to let go tradition, philosophies, vain deceits and man-made fictions and teachings that are really doctrines of demons, for God’s Word.  

The hearts can be wrong, even in believers and teachers.  See Luke 24:25, where Jesus said, “O dull-witted men and with minds so slow”!  Also, in Mark 16:14, where Jesus appeared to the eleven after the resurrection and “reproved them for their lack of faith, unbelief, stubbornness and dullness”.

They can be forever learning and yet never attain to recognition of the truth, as it says in 2 Timothy 3:5;4:3, finding teachers to satisfy their fancies or fictions. 

These things are what “Spiritual Warfare” is all about.  The current way of teaching so-called Spiritual Warfare is unscriptural and comes close to being a myth.

Spiritual Warfare is a medieval belief of the Eastern Orthodox churches and others that do not teach the born-again experience.  In Orthodox mystic-ascetic spirituality, the Christian is supposedly fighting against demons continually

It came into the Charismatic Move.  It had not been in the Pentecostal Movement before that time.  If one looks at the history of the Roman Catholic Charismatic Move, it is apparent that Spiritual Warfare was a major tenet of their beliefs.  We can not learn any spiritual truth from the Roman Catholic Charismatics.  Bible Christians have far more truth.

 Their speaking in tongues in Roman Catholic Charismatic moves,  in the first instance, is definitely of God who by His grace met them where they are, as He did in the house of Cornelius, Acts 10.  If they follow on to know the Lord Jesus they will  read His word.  They should  particularly look at the book of Hebrews that shows Jesus Christ as the High Priest in Heaven and as the Sacrifice for sin once for all.  Then if obedient, they will repudiate the Mass and the exaltation and mediator ship of Mary.  They will see the uselessness of Penance.  They will leave their imprisonment in the system of Rome.  If not, it could be that Satanic spirits come into their lives and are then the source of their speaking in tongues.  The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of Truth.  Satan is a liar with lying demons against Truth.

How can Bible believers and those speaking in tongues in the Charismatic and Pentecostal Movements follow the Roman Catholics Charismatics?  We cannot.

This is not what the Bible teaches.  The Scriptures show that the Spirit lusts against the flesh in us, not demons.  That is where the fight lies and it is one of faith.  When there is “warfare” in the Church and it is demonic, it is one where she engages herself against heresy and persecution, in particular.

The Bible teaches that there are evil powers and dominions under Satan.  They were defeated by Christ at the Cross and thrown down from the heavenly sphere.  The final overthrow of their present hostile power will take place at the Second Coming.  They cannot harm the believer who remains in Christ, covered by His Blood and remains in His Spirit and His Word.

Their workings are many but come against the church collectively rather than to believers personally, although how the church is becomes reflected in each individual believer.  Satan works through heresies, persecution and the world with its national leaderships, philosophies, cultures, economical systems, education, media, religions etc.  They attack the church, as recorded in Ephesians 6:10-18, Revelation 2,3; chapter 13 etc.

 Believers do not “feel" the demons, as “He who is in us is greater than he who is in the world”.  Rather, they blindly succumb to heresies, worldliness, the world’s systems, do not know their freedom from demonic power and/or fall prey to their national and cultural heritage.  This happens through lack of the armour of Ephesians 6.

 This armour as enumerated, is that of Truth, Righteousness, the Gospel of Peace, Faith, Salvation and the Word of God.  Equipped with all of this armour, the church would be kept in the way of truth and godliness.  Alas, this she has failed to do even unto this present day, despite the showers of blessing sent by the Lord upon her; The gospel is the power of God unto salvation to all who believe.

It is not necessary and it is unscriptural, to pull down the strongholds of a demonic power or dominion, a Prince Demon, over cities.  The early church did not do that.  They did what is mentioned in Ephesians 6:15, 17.  Their feet were “shod with the gospel of peace”.  In other words, as they preached the gospel in heathen cities and to unbelievers, Jew and Gentile, they themselves became a flavour of death to the unbelievers and of life to those who believed.  They had salvation and used the Word of God, which is the Sword of the Spirit.  They were clothed with truth and righteousness, which is the Christ and His righteousness.  This righteousness was manifest also in their lives.  As well, the Holy Spirit who sanctifies believers, gave them gifts of the Holy Ghost.  Signs and wonders were done in the Name of Jesus.  Thus sinners were converted to Jesus Christ.

In Revelation 19:12-15, there is a sword hat comes out of the mouth of the rider of the white horse.  His nature is purity and He wears the robe on which is the blood of His sacrifice.  He strikes down nations with His sword.  This sword is the word of His eternal gospel.  That is what affects nations and enables many of the citizens to be saved.

There is no scriptural basis for casting down Prince Demons of cities.  What happened in the book of Daniel had no connection with the Gospel Age or activity of the saints who are to obey the commands of Jesus, “Go you into all the world and preach the gospel”.  There is no thought of a warfare against Prince Demons before there are believers who obey the gospel.

On examination of Daniel 10:5-20 certain facts arise.  First of all, the man in verses 5 and 6 is obviously the same Person as in Ezekiel 9:2,3 and Revelation 1:12-18.  In the latter verses, He is the Lord Jesus Christ, the son of God.  In the two previous portions, He, the eternal Son of God, comes as the Angel of the Lord, revealed also in Exodus 3:2-6 and 23:20-22, where He forgives sin.  Only God can forgive sins.

It is noticeable that no human is involved in the opposition as shown in Daniel 10:13.  No human did any warfare.  There was not any activity in this evil spirit realm of the kingdom of Persia.  It was not Daniel who did  any “spiritual warfare”.   The One who withstood the Prince of Persia was a heavenly Being.  Daniel did nothing to dislodge or defeat any demonic prince in that kingdom.  It was a heathen kingdom whose idolatry was headed by their king.  The kingdoms around Israel, were involved in her history.  Persia, Greece and Egypt are mentioned in the next chapter.   Their idolatry was of the deepest kind.  Their might affected Israel.  God had a plan for Israel and knew her future history.  Those events in chapter 11 can be read in history books of the past, that happened around the time of Alexander the Great.  Daniel was told of future events that would pave the way for his people to produce the Saviour, Jesus Christ.  Obviously, Satan kept on endeavouring to thwart the Saviour’s coming and death for us, as he did throughout the whole of the Old Testament and during the time when the Son of God was on earth.   He tried to do this when Jesus hung on the cross but according to Colossians 2:15, Jesus totally defeated Satan for us.

During this present period of Gospel activity, Satan is bound, as we read in Luke 11:21,22 and in Revelation 20:2.   Jesus Christ has bound him and his power in this gospel age.  This is clear from Matthew 12:28,29  where Jesus discusses the matter.  He relates the binding of the “strong man”  to the Kingdom of God.  He is the One who came announcing the Kingdom of God and died on the cross to effect its introduction.   These verses do not give believers authority to bind Satan.  Only the Son of God could do that.  He did not tell us to “bind Satan in Jesus’ Name”.  He bound Satan on the Cross, Colossians 2:15.  Therefore the Word of God in the gospel has power to set the captives free, as it is the power of God unto salvation, Romans 1:16.  There is no scriptural basis for the “binding” of Satan and of demons that prevails widely in Charismatic circles.  Jesus told us that in His Name, we will cast out demons.  It is the power of His name as we cast them out in the Spirit of God that delivers the demon-possessed and afflicted, as we have often seen.  We are to pray always, in the Spirit, including in other tongues.

God confirmed their words with signs following and gifts of the Holy Ghost.  Many turned to Christ, because it is the gospel that is the power of God unto salvation.  The preaching of the gospel in faith and in the power of the Spirit, is mighty and that pulls down powers of evil in people’s lives.  As Jesus is preached, He, lifted up on the Cross, draws men and women to Himself in faith.  Millions have become believers without anyone bringing down the Prince Demons over cities!